Instagram VS Reality

Our generation is filled to the brim with different technologies. From cars that can steer themselves to apps on our phone, there is no escaping that technology has consumed parts of our every day lives.

If, like me, you love Instagram – you will find that your days of scrolling are filled with slightly unrealistic expectations. Instagram is a funny one because it is you who chooses who you follow so be it travel, music, close friends – you have the power to adjust what you see. But the thing is, you don’t really. Instagram is all about putting your best foot forward – it doesn’t have to be scantly clad women that make you feel bad about yourself for eating that share pack of Hunky Doreys to yourself. It can be something as small as a friend doing something great or someone cooking something you could only dream about to make you feel bad about yourself.

I always come across these posts branded as ‘Instagram VS Reality’ where users give you the insight into how they got their picture. Most of these are fitness based, but you can find these across every type of post on Instagram, because it’s not reality!

I have heard it on more than one occasion about people wondering about this ‘travel lifestyle’ that I have set up for myself – but that is definitely just Instagram and definitely not reality. In reality, I sit at a desk from Monday to Friday marketing the sh*t out of Catering Supplies (Do you know how hard it is to make cutlery look sexy?!). In reality, I only have 20 annual leave days which is pathetic really and two days off at the weekend to cram in as much as I can before sitting down at my same chair, at the same desk I sat in last week. I love my job, don’t get me wrong. But my life is most certainly not one big adventure, my life is a 9-5 job dealing with bowls and plates and some fun on the side to keep me ticking over. Everyone also assumes that I constantly jet off, when in actual fact most of my Instagram pictures were taken here in Ireland – right on their doorstep!

This is the problem about Instagram – and most other social media platforms. It shows you the night out, but never the grueling hangover that is life. I don’t mean to fool people into thinking I have a better life than I do, but I do just by showing one side of my life on that platform and nothing else.

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34 thoughts on “Instagram VS Reality”

Great thoughts. I love Instagram because it’s photography based. We get sucked into a kind of vortex when scrolling through the photos. But it’s certainly not reality. Just a fun diversion. Maybe a diversion from the pain of life, not speaking of myself there. I hope Facebook never ruins it like they did FB.

I absolutely love Instagram and it’s by far my favourite social media platform, I think it just throws me when people assume they know all about what I’m doing just from my posts! Either way I won’t stop using it but people should take what you post with a pinch of salt!

Great post! I think about this kind of stuff all the time, especially how social media can contribute to depression and social anxieties because it makes people’s lives look amazing and trouble free when they really aren’t. Instagram is also my favourite platform but I’ve got into the habit as using it as a source of inspiration (which certainly makes me feel a lot better!)

That’s the perfect way to use it! Once you are aware that it’s not real and that most bloggers hire fully fledged photographers for their pictures you start to realize that comparing yourself to them is completely pointless!

I was smiling reading this post thinking this is me 🙂 I get asked by friends why I am constantly traveling when I really do not. Maybe, most seem to think that their own dream destinations easily become within reach when ordinary people make their travel pictures come alive with words. Cheers to us who can make our little adventures seem like the lifestyle some people can only dream about! I just hope in a good way.

Great read. Completely agree that it’s easy to forget that platforms such as Instagram don’t show the whole picture and only what the user wants you to see. Like you though, it’s still my favourite piece of social media 🙂

Thank you! I very rarely post anything negative on Instagram. It’s not even because I don’t want people to know about the bad things in life, but more so because it will ruin the aesthetic of my profile (how sad!!) It’s an app that I can’t help but love to use – you just have to take it all with a pinch of salt!

I really liked this post. Snapchat has proved to be the bane of my existence on numerous occasions. Whether doing something fun or enjoying a pleasant view, I will surely always turn to find my friends filming…”Say something for Snapchat!” one of them will shout. Fortunately that usually leaves me with the upper hand because there are a lot of things I can say that they don´t want public.

I’ve been reading a lot about this recently. Definitely important stuff to keep in mind, particularly with the rise of “influencers” and the increasing tendency of tourists to visit places based on Instagram. Appreciate it for what it is – pretty pictures for you to look at while killing time – and then put the phone down!

To be honest as an Instagramer myself, I don’t think that I am cheating reality when I Photoshop someone photobombing my pic, but I know where are you coming from. 🙂
In my opinion, the best thing to do is to keep grounded and know your possibilities.
Miriam from http://www.rogueandromanvisuals.com/journal

I 100% agree. I actually have two instagram accounts, the very polished one where I only post my best travel pictures and follow other travellers and more personal account where I can put just as many selfies as I want without giving a damn how well it fits to the rest of the feed. But to be fair I feel like it’s not just instagram but how social media works in general – most of us only put the best of our lives online which makes everything seem very desirable but also unrealistic.

I have such a love-hate relationship with Instagram. On one hand, it’s my favorite platform. On another, Facebook has been slowing ruining it ever since taking away the chronological order function. It’s slowly dying the more and more they try to push you to boost your posts, and I hate it—I never see the people I want to see anymore, ugh.

I totally agree with this! People seem to think that what you post about is your life in a nutshell, but normal people will only show the side they want to show and filter their posts. Do I want to post about my 45-work week, of course not. But do I want to share travel photos – of course!

You are so right about Instagram . I use it myself but so many people spend so much time trying to get that perfect shot, the perfect place, the perfect outfit to wear. It’s unrealist. (See Sportsandtravelblog.wordpress.com /2017/08/03 – social – media – I’ve – got-a-bone-to-pick-with-you)